A few weeks ago, I remarked to a friend that I was deeply envious of anyone who got to see the megabomb musicalization of Carrie years back. There's something exciting about a live show that appears destined to flop hard; in fact, in theater communities, they are even more memorable years later, long after the latest sham revue musical has won the Best Musical Tony. Bat Boy the Musical looked like one of those shows -- on paper anyway. The prospect of turning a "Weekly World News" tabloid story into a full-blown musical seemed like a howler, but I'm happy to report that Bat Boy, while occasionally overshooting its boundaries, does its best to restore the mentality of real, honest-to-God camp. From the first five minutes, the show very clearly states its intentions -- and don't let the guffawing patrons around fool you: Bat Boy is completely aware of your thoughts. One of the most admirable qualities is how it pinpoints your eyebrow-raising at just the right moments. When the cast convenes for the opening number, "Hold Me, Bat Boy," a gloriously un-serious poke at the stiff upper lips of the musical format, you laugh twice. First, for how ridiculously funny it all is, and second, because for all its heightened mockery, it still fully resembles the kind of overearnest drippiness seen on the Great White Way every night in New York. Its story concerns the discovery of a young being in a cave, Bat Boy (played by Deven May, in a sharp, expertly detailed performance), who is stumbled upon by a group of bong-tokin' young kids. The town sheriff (Richard Pruitt) thinks it best to keep Bat Boy caged up, where he can then be looked after by Dr. Parker (Sean McCourt) when he returns from a hunting trip. Parker's wife Meredith (the sublime Kaitlin Hopkins) and daughter Shelley (Kerry Butler) develop an affinity for the new houseguest while harboring him during Dr. Parker's respite. A boy with very pointy ears and a ghostly pale complexion (he bears a passing resemblance to Willem Dafoe in "Shadow of the Vampire"), he is deemed a freak by the townspeople, who also believe his bloodthirst is partly responsible for the vanishing livestock. When Dr. Parker returns, the family agrees to turn Bat Boy into a real boy, with lessons in etiquette and speech. In a terrific bit of parody, Bat Boy then begins to speak in a clipped British accent, aptly mocking Broadway's penchant for having actors speak this way even when there is no need, presumably because it just sounds more refined. The plot, as in an old, bizarre 1950s science-fiction feature, goes in all sorts of crazy directions, and when the play does this, some of its vital signs decrease. Laurence O'Keefe's music and lyrics are witty, but the show is too long at 2.5 hours and the production, while extremely innovative at times, is a little busier than necessary. (This might have played more effectively in a Lower East Side hideaway, where its in-jokey style would have been more appreciated.) But the cast keeps you entertained and illuminates the show throughout, which is a big plus. Hopkins has an unerring sense of comic timing and never lets one laugh get by her. Watching her reaction shots alone is worth the price of admission. And Deven May does wonders with the title character. A difficult role to parlay without being too unctuous, he incorporates clowning, comedy and even some surprising depth to a character that could have been only one of those things. His singing voice is fresh and robust, one of the more dynamic I've heard on stage lately. That this production is occupying the same space as the Pulitzer winning Wit is pretty amazing, but that is by no means an insult. I'm not quite sure what its future prospects are, but to tell the truth, any show that finds a way to mock The Lion King with stuffed animals having sex is okay in my book.
